It seems that the family who lived in the lower part of the jail, kept a barrel of corn in that room below us, from which they fed their chickens, and that barrel set right under the hole we had cut; and when the old woman went to get some corn for her chickens that morning, she found it covered with chips and cinders, and looking up to ascertain the cause, discovered the hole in the ceiling. She at once notified the Sergeant of the discovery, and the result was we had our trouble and work for nothing.
Captain Alban and myself were the only Yankee prisoners in the jail, and until our arrival there had been no attempt at escape, and to us therefore was attributed all of the attempts to break out.
While the reb deserters were willing to share with us all the benefits to be derived from a break, they were too shiftless and lazy to fully enter into our plans for an escape.
CHAPTER XX.
another attempt at escape discovered—a bold plot—lack of sand in the reb deserters—a brave negro—the flogging.
Being satisfied that I could remove the flooring at any time within a few minutes, I told my fellow prisoners what I had said, and what I had seen done, and that when everything had become quiet, I would guarantee to get them out with ten minutes work. Some of the rebs were not satisfied, and insisted upon loosening the floor again at once, and despite all I could do, they persisted in doing so. The third night after was settled upon as the one to leave, as it promised to be dark and rainy, but just before night, the Sergeant took it into his head to try the floor, and procuring a long pole he went into the room below and punched at the loose boards, which immediately yielded, and then he brought in another carpenter, and personally superintended stopping up the aperture, which was done by spiking pieces of joist, against the floor joists, completely closing it up.
As I said, we had cut a hole through the partition, so that we could communicate with our neighbors in the next room. We made up a plot with them to seize the Sergeant when he came in at night to empty their slop pail, lock him in the room, take the keys and unlock our door, and we would all leave at once. We had bribed one of the guard to let us disarm him, and then we would be free to go out. When we got outside we would encounter another guard, but with one gun we could easily overpower and disarm him, and then trust to the two guns and our agility to gain the woods, which were close by.
It was all arranged that the large, powerful negro should seize the Sergeant from behind and hold him, while his companions secured his pistol and the keys. That night when the Sergeant came up, he brought one armed guard to the head of the stairs, and proceeded to unlock the door. As he entered, the negro, who stood behind the door, caught him from behind, securely pinioning his arms, and the keys and revolver were taken from him and all passed out except the negro, who was holding the Sergeant as securely as though he was in a vice.